7 Bad Hair Habits to Kick

Dr. Constance Odom, MD

Medically reviewed by

Dr. Constance Odom, MD

Dr. Constance Odom, MD

About

Constance Tambakis Odom, MD graduated in 1987 with her Doctorate of Medicine from the New York Medical College, and was an Anesthesiologist Resident from 1988 to 1991 at the Brookdale Medical Center PGY II (CA-I)-PGY IV (CA-III). She is Board Certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology since 1998 and American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine since 2002. Constance Odom, MD is affiliated with the American Medical Association, American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine, American Society of Anesthesiology, Georgia Society of Anesthesiology, Hellenic Medical Society of New York, North Carolina Society of Anesthesiology, and Society of Ambulatory Anesthesia.

Credentials

Medical Director At:

• Nu Image Medical
• MetroMedispa P.A.

Staff Anesthesiologist at:

• Betsy Johnson Regional Hospital in Dunn, NC
• Onslow Memorial Hospital in Jacksonville, NC
• Duplin General Hospital in Kenansville, NC

Director of Anesthesia Services at:

• Jacksonville Surgery Center in Jacksonville, NC

Written by our editorial team.

Last Edited 4 years ago · 6 min read

They say that old habits die hard, and if you think about the terrible things that you might be doing to your hair, you may have found out just how much death can occur while you are trying to turn over a new leaf. Taking pride in your appearance is a completely normal thing, and usually, self-care activities are productive and help with total body well-being. However, you may have picked up some bad habits of hair care along the way without realizing the impact that they could have on your hair health. At some point, almost everyone across the globe will experience some form of hair loss. In fact, it is normal to lose an average of 100 hairs a day. If you lose more than that or the loss tends to persist and is excessive, you may be a victim of hair shedding. Check out these bad habits and see if you are self-inflicting damage to a normally healthy head of hair.

1. Infrequent Shampooing. Shampooing is important to maintain both a healthy scalp and hair. As the scalp is simply a layer of skin covered with hair, you need to pay attention to cleansing the area just as frequently and wholly as you do the other areas of your body. Depending on how oily your scalp is or the number of products you use, you should wash your hair at least every other day to get rid of pollutants and oils that may have built up.

2. Excessive Shampooing. On the opposite end of the spectrum is shampooing the hair too often. For people with brittle hair, too much shampooing can lead to breakage and loss. In this case, a moisturizing shampoo can help people who have brittle, dry, or fragile hair. It is still recommended that you give your hair a break.

3. Eating Poorly. You probably haven’t considered how a diet loaded with sugars, carbs, and high in fat will affect your hair growth and health. Hair needs nutrients to grow just as your muscles and tissues rely on certain vitamins and minerals to operate properly. The best things you can feed your hair are whole grains, vegetables, fruits, lean protein, and healthy fats. Your hair is made up of proteins, and by consuming healthy proteins, you help create structure and strength with your hair. If your diet is poor and you have low iron or Vitamin D, it can affect your hair. Thinning hair problems that aren’t addressed can lead to more serious issues of hair loss. Some people consider their loss related to genetics, but many times it can be the result of an iron deficiency.

4. Overbleaching. When it comes to effect on your hair, bleaching and coloring have two different results. Coloring can actually plump up the fibers in the hair strands and make your head look more full, while bleaching creates the opposite effect. Hair fibers exposed to continual bleaching become thin and more easily prone to breakage. You may be able to a high-lift hair color that gives you the same look instead of using a bleaching agent.

5. Too Much Heat. While you may rely on your flat iron or hot rollers to give you that bouncy, wave or you need a hairdryer to coax your hairs to lay in even precision, too much heat can be harsh on the hair. Weakening the hair shaft, or the fibers, creates more breakage, but too much high heat can also damage the cuticle on the outer layer of hair. While this creates thinning, any internal struggle with the hair follicles might keep the scalp from being able to replace what was lost.

6. Using the Wrong Brush. Since you use a brush every day, the wrong brush can do some serious damage and create breakage. Boar-bristle brushes are often the most popular selection, but these are the worst options for your hair. They might give a lot of traction, but the repetitive scratching begins to fray your hair strands. Metal brushes tend to do the same things. Your best option is a brush that has rounded plastic prongs. If you have a vented plastic base, you can help diffuse the concentrated heat that tends to get trapped in a brush when in use during a blow-dry.

7. Not Snipping the Ends. People who want their hair to grow longer need to understand the benefit of a little trim every few weeks. Dead and frayed ends not only look unsightly, but they can get snagged more easily on brushes or in styling tools. This can lead to more noticeable hair loss. Thick, healthy hair can grow even when it seems counterintuitive to snip off a quarter of an inch every eight weeks.

Healthy hair might only be a few good choices away from you. Take inventory of your actions, and see what bad habits you need to kick.

Nu Image Medical® offers a new and futuristic approach to achieving optimal health and wellness. The company has been a weight loss, anti-aging and wellness provider since 2004 and offers medically supervised programs for medical weight loss, peptides, erectile dysfunction, scream cream, and hair loss (NuDew) 

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The information contained herein is not a substitute for and should never be relied upon for professional medical advice. Always talk to your physician about the risks and benefits of any treatment. Nu Image Medical may not offer the medications or services mentioned in this article.